Graduates from the Community & Leadership Development degree program apply
cutting edge practices associated with education, leadership and communication
to empower 21st Century communities for positive change. They do so
by working with local communities, businesses, and programs throughout their
undergraduate experience, applying classroom concepts to real world situations.

As a result of their professional experiences, graduates have established
careers in the following fields:

Students pursuing an undergraduate degree in Community and Leadership
Development examine "community" from three different angles:

1.
Communities of Place - the geographic area in which people live

2.
Communities of Practice – assembling around common areas of work or profession

3.
Communities of Interest - people who gather with common interests

While developing their professional capacities, undergraduates have the
opportunity to focus their community studies within the following professional
contexts:

Agriculture – having to do directly
or indirectly with the field of agriculture, agricultural processes and consumer
markets/education.

Humans & Society – including youth
and human development and the services associated this those processes (focused
on the individual)

Community Structures –
organizations within community that provide structure and support for the
community and community members as well – can be governmental, for or non-profit
(focused on the organization)

Additionally, students are able to further hone their professional skills by
receiving specialized instruction in community education (non-classroom based
teaching); community communications; or community leadership development:

Community Education: focuses
on educational programming that promotes learning and social development outside
the classroom. Community educators work with individuals and communities using
informal and formal learning strategies.

Community Communications:
focuses on types of communication used within communities, with special emphasis
placed upon communications’ role in community development, empowerment.

Community Leadership Development:
for students interested in building the skills and knowledge needed to function
as effective community leaders and change agents. This emphasis area focuses on
both the practice of leadership as well as the context in which it occurs.

For more details contact the Director of Undergraduate Studies for CLD:

Kristina G. Ricketts, Ph.D.

Department of Community & Leadership Development
| University of Kentucky

Tel. 859.257.3767 | Fax. 859.257.1164 | Office: 713 Garrigus Building

Major Description:

If you have strong communications and interpersonal skills, enjoy teaching and
sharing your knowledge with others, and want to make a difference by changing
the social, political, and economic environment of your community or
organization, this is your major. There are four major subject areas within
Community and Leadership Development: Community Communications; Community and
Community Development; Leadership; and Non-formal Education. All areas share a
common core of classes and allow you to concentrate on one or more of the four
areas while tailoring the classes to fit your interests. Graduates find success
as communications specialists in the public and private sector, managers in
business and industry, government agencies, community associations, and
non-profit organizations. You can also use this degree as a stepping stone to
graduate and professional school opportunities.

University-wide Education Abroad
experiences abound. The scholarship program is also strong. Many
students who would not consider the option due to the expense may be
surprised to find how much aid they could receive. A second
consideration is National Student Exchange (NSE). This program allows a
student to attend another university within the United States for the
cost of paying UK’s tuition. Notably, room and board may vary a little,
but it’s a cost effective alternative for those who are unable to
participate in education abroad, but wish to explore a new area. Two
links are below. The first is UK’s NSE website. It is inclusive;
however, for additional information. the official NSE website: Education
Abroad has been included:

Several scholarship opportunities exist. The College of Agriculture
(COA) Academic Programs Scholarship site. This link includes information
on the College-wide 650,000 scholarship program, UK Academic
Scholarships, Financial Aid Office, Academic Common Market, KEES
Scholarship Information, UK Legacy Tuition Program, Multicultural
Affairs/Diversity Scholarships, and Residency Requirements for instate
tuition. Although the UK Academic Scholarship website is linked from the
COA scholarship page I think it would be remiss not to include UK
Academic Scholarships as its own link. Further, it is suggested to
explore Fastweb. This is a reputable site that offers a scholarship
search engine. Finally, a section linking to outside scholarships that
pertain specifically to students in Community and Leadership Development
(CLD) and Agricultural Education (AED).